TOK - Arts

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Transcript of TOK - Arts

ARTS AND KNOWLEDGE ARTS AND KNOWLEDGE Representational art - Representational art is art which is trying to represent reality in a realist manner- But can art be purely representational? Is there always a hint of the artist in the art piece?- Can you represent reality as it actually is?- Why not just take a picture? Conceptual Art "A picture is worth a thousand words"-Napoleon Bonaparte "A picture is worth a thousand words"-unknown origins -What separates aesthetic judgments from personal taste is that they’re disinterested.-Aesthetic judgments make a universal claim.-When judging a piece of art, you shouldn’t bring your own personal taste into it. Instead you should look at it disinterestedly. (not uninterestedly, that’s another thing)

-How are our judgments about what distinguishes good art from bad art objective?-How are they influenced by the culture we grow up in and our personal tastes?-Is there are difference between “good” and “beautiful, “ugly” and “bad”?-Are esthetical aspects as important as the conceptual?-Are there objective criteria of assessment in art? JUDGING ART Paradox of Aesthetic Judgement -Aesthetics is a branch in philosophy which studies beauty and the arts-The paradox of aesthetic judgment: * On the one hand, we take seriously the idea that there are standard aesthetic judgments and that some judgments are better than others.* But then on the other hand we say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and we can’t argue about tastes.-The first half of the paradox suggests that good art and bad art can be distinguished from each other.-The second half seems to state that it’s as useless to argue about tastes in art as it is to argue about tastes in food. -Then again we might be able to “educate” our culinary tastes, so perhaps our artistic tastes can also be educated. "The fact that art it, in all aspects, whether creative or interpretative, a subjective activity, does not mean that its appreciation can be reduced to simple questions of likes and dislikes, and that there are no criteria of assessment or values. Such relegation... would reduce art to mere entertainment and decoration"-Joseph Chiari, Art and Knowledge - Conceptual art is art which is attempting (rarely succeeding) to capture a concept into a piece of art- Can you, through art, represent or present conceptual ideas? Are they objective or subjective presentations?- Tracy Emin, Picasso Intentions -Does art require an intention to create it?

-Does the "death of the author" apply for art?

-What consequences does it have?

-Roland Barthes' "The Death of the Author"

"... his hand, detached from any voice, borne by a pure inscription,traces a field without origin" Define artist: “One, such as a painter, sculptor, or writer, who is able by virtue of imagination and talent or skill to create works of aesthetic value, especially in the fine arts.”_thefreedictionary.com

3 theories to identify if something is a work of art: -Intentions of the artist-Quality of the work-Response of the spectators What is Art “The idea that art can be regarded as a form of knowledge does not have a secure history in contemporary philosophical thought.”

-Appeals to emotions rather than reason (Plato) Specific Features of Art Knowledge * Mathematics: art is not factual whereas in math when you prove something, then it becomes a fact

* History: there are sources that were written during or right after the event which then creates facts. We can also tell if something is biased or propaganda so therefore we have different sources. How does it differ from other areas of knowledge? - Upper Paleolithic- Egyptian- Renaissance- Romanticism- Futurist- Surrealism- Abstract expressionism The role of art in culture Picture paints a thousand words, spread ideas & own opinions on current issuesRepresents different cultures ex. if asked to paint the same landscape two cultures could paint it very differently What is the Purpose of Art? 3 Theories About the Nature of Art - Imitation or copy theory- The purpose of art is to copy reality, Mimetic theory of art by Plato- We expect a portrait to be good in likeness- Cameras lead to revolutionary changes in nineteenth century- What does it mean to copy something?- Simple reproduction- Sophisticated version; Not just a reproduction but a creative reinterpretation of reality“Art does not reproduce the visible; rather it makes visible” Paul Klee (1878-1940)- We see, think and feel differently after great pieces of art

Art as Imitation Art as Communication - Communicating a message to a spectator- We need to learn the “language of art”- We understand and appreciate art bettertwo dimensions:horizontal: enables us to explore the breadth of human experiencevertical: enables us to explore the depth of human experience

- Moral and educative role- Connection between arts and ethics, both provoke emotions that influence our behavior and shape our attitudes by offering a range of role models- Challenges us to question our assumptions and gives new perspectives- Raises questions about how we see or think about things around us or live our lives

-> Moral provocation

- Broaden our awareness, develop our empathy and sharpen our intuitions -> more universal perspective- Can help us to empathize with other people